Deuteronomy 28:36
The LORD shall bring thee, and thy king which thou shalt set over thee, unto a nation which neither thou nor thy fathers have known; and there shalt thou serve other gods, wood and stone. The LORD shall bring thee, and thy king which thou shalt set over thee, unto a nation which neither thou nor thy fathers have known; and there shalt thou serve other gods, wood and stone.
Moses read the verse aloud to all Israel assembled before him from the book he had written, alongside the record of their past history and the promises of God if they would be obedient, declaring the curses that would come if they were disobedient. The verse belongs to the directions in Deuteronomy 26, 27 and 28, and specifically to the chapter 28 presentation of the blessings of obedience and the curses and fearful warnings for disobedience and transgression of God's commandments. God's promises to Israel were upon condition of obedience, with the living God himself, not the ark itself, governing prosperity and adversity; obedience would bring life and entrance into the promised land, while disobedience would alter the promised outcome and bring judgment, adversity and a curse, as shown when the adult generation and army that left Egypt was refused entry into the promised land. As one of those threatened consequences for disobedience, the verse names exile in which the Lord will bring the people and the king they set over them to a foreign nation unknown to them and their fathers, where they will serve other gods.
The directions express the principles of the law of the kingdom of God, made specific so that minds are not left in ignorance and uncertainty. The chapter is to be read with Exodus 15 to show God's covenant of mercy that if His people diligently hearken to His voice and do right and keep His commandments and statutes He will put none of the diseases of Egypt upon them; transgressing the law breaks down the barriers He erected to preserve them in health and holiness so they might live in health and holiness, so that disease of every kind comes as the result of sin, as taught by the waters of Marah. The verse presents a never-ceasing obligation on all whom God has blessed with life and health and temporal and spiritual advantages, and people must choose whether to suffer the threatened results or enjoy the blessings; its message has not grown weak with age, for God's claims are just as binding now and just as fresh in importance as His gifts are fresh and continual.